Business WeekApril 14, 2008Most people in this country take for granted the financial safety net marriage creates for the couples who enter into it. Being denied marriage and its associated legal and financial protections affects same-sex couples and their families at every stage of life. It’s not only unfair; it’s not good business sense. [Link]

New York TimesApril 11, 2008When Vermont enacted same-sex civil union legislation in 2000, it was the first state to do so, and gay and lesbian couples who came to Vermont found only a smattering of florists, wedding planners, inns, resorts and other vendors for civil unions. But since 2000, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Jersey and New Hampshire have legalized same-sex civil unions or marriages…Throughout the Northeast, competition has spiked among wedding sites, hotels, resorts and inns as the travel industry has realized that same-sex ceremonies can draw scores of guests, who turn these destinations weddings into weekend stays. [Link]

The Republic of TApril 8, 2008Terrance reflects on the answer to the question, "Are you married?" He writes, "there are a thousand different ways in which the answer to that question can impact our lives and our families, because we can’t legally marry, and the law can’t figure out what to do do with us, or how to define us, and hasn’t caught up with us as we forge ahead with our lives, making commitments to each other, and creating our families as we go. In those cases, we don’t often get the benefit of the doubt." [Link]

Live JournalApril 7, 2008A different sex couple preparing for their wedding plans their favors to be donations “to either the Human Rights Campaign or Freedom to Marry in support of equal marriage rights for LGBTQ couples. This is, by far, one of the most serious elements of our wedding; everything else is pretty silly and fun. However, we do want to show our support for the many gay and lesbian guests we'll have in attendance who are denied the rights we will enjoy as man and wife.” [Link]

Bay Area ReporterApril 3, 2008Donations to the connectional ministries of the United Church of Christ increased by over a million dollars in 2007 following its endorsement of marriage equality in 2005. [Link]